The 8 Foods that make you Bloated

I ate something and later felt that stomach had swollen. Is it due to overeating? Feels like Bloated! Of course, yes, as the gas builds up in your stomach/intestines. Bloating can also occur when your body retains too much water, thanks to high-sodium grub. But getting bloated can slow you down and drain your energy. It can be avoided by limiting our consumption to these foods.

Beer: Full of bubbles and worse than other carbonated beverages, along with alcohol, it can cause bacteria overgrowth in small intestine, hence leaving you inflated.

Frozen Dinners: Frozen dinners and canned soups are often packed with salt. When buying such processed foods, do check the label to know the level of sodium present. The salt is added for flavouring and shell life but may retain water and hence bloating.

Broccoli: Too much fibre based veggies become difficult to digest and produce gas in your GI tract. Cruciferous veggies like Kale and broccoli has raffinose, a sugar producing extra gas when breaking down. But veggies are rich source of nutritional benefits so don’t skip it completely. Instead cook your vegetables, the heat will break some fibres to reduce the effort of your body.

Dairy: To some extent, many people are sensitive to milk products. When your gut bacteria breaks down milk, a gas releases giving uncomfortable feel. Try EliminationDiet where you abandon milk and cheese for 21 days and afterwards observe the body change, you will come to know whether milk products are real culprits for your bloating.

Diet Soda: Your body does not know how to digest those artificial sweeteners wrapped under diet sodas. These sweeteners disrupt the Microbiota (body’s natural balance of gut bacteria) leading to bigger belly.

Legumes: Its quite tedious to break down legumes. The body produce more gas in your gut when working overtime in digesting sugar and fibre. But legumes are a great source of protein, folate and iron so don’t skip it totally. When having a big meal (that may cause swelling), its probably best to steer clear of things like beans and edamame.

Gum: When people tend to swallow while chewing gum or sucking a hard candy- then a part of what you swallowed is air. All of that extra air can back in your digestive tract and leave you feeling bloated. Like Diet soda, most sugar-free gum has artificial sweeteners that are difficult to break down by your body and hence causes bloating.

Onions and Garlic: Onions have Fructans i.e. soluble fibres that may cause bloating. People who are allergic to garlic/onions are more prone to bloating. People can use collard greens, leeks, chives, basil, etc. as alternatives to onions and garlic.

Antidotes to Bloating!

1 Bananas: A potassium-packed fruit that can regulate your body’s sodium levels and eliminating the salt-induced bloat as potassium has reverse reaction to gut-busting effects of sodium.

2 Fennel: Your friend for digestion! They allow you to pee and flush out excess water weight (diuretic) and also have compound to settle digestive issues. You can add it in a meat or pasta dish as a stomach-friendly ingredient to consume.

3 Watermelon: Your body may retain water to combat dehydration but this can even cause Bloating. Ironically, drink more and eat water-filled fruits to flush out excess water. Watermelon is pioneer in this regard.

4 Peppermint: It’s oil can help fighting cramping and gas. Next time sip a cup of peppermint tea and say bye-bye to bloating.

5 Cucumber: A watery veggie containing anti-inflammatory element and may reduce the swell.

6 Papaya: It contains Papain that puts a stop to tummy troubles. Papain breaks down protein in your GI tract to make easy digestion.

7 Ginger: An anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant, helps in fighting everything from ageing to the big bad bloat. Sip a cup of ginger tea to feel the change.

These are some stuffs to help you understand that Bloating is not always a normal thing and treat it seriously to feel light, comfortable and, yes, bloated-free!